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NUMISMATIC NOTES, <~ ate 
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No. 26 A Se aN 
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MITHRADATES OF PARTHIA 
AND 
HYSPAOSINES OF CHARACENE: 


A NUMISMATIC PALIMPSEST 


By EDWARD T. NEWELL 


THE AMERICAN NUMISMATIC SOCIETY — 
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1925 


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Poet AA TES OF PARTHIA 
AND 
Peet OoINES OF CHARACENE: 


menu MISMATIC PALIMPSEST 


BY 


EDWARD T. NEWELL 


WY 





THE AMERICAN NUMISMATIC SOCIETY 
BROADWAY AT 156rH STREET 
NEW YORK 
1925 


, 


+ 


UMISMATIC SOCIETY 








COPYRIGHT I925 BY 


od 


THE AMERICAN N 














MITHRADATES OF PARTHIA 
AND 
HYSPAOSINES OF CHARACENE: 


A NUMISMATIC PALIMPSEST 


By Epwarp T. NEWELL 


Some fifteen years ago, in a rather typi- 
cal parcel of ancient copper coins sent the 
writer from Baghdad, there were a num- 
ber of unusual pieces bearing the head of 
the Parthian king, Mithradates II. These 
particular specimens, six in number, form- 
ed a group by themselves, distinguished 
from the remainder of the lot not only by 
their types but also by a peculiar reddish 
patina which they bore.. Apparently, they 
were a “‘find’’, ora portion of one. Other 
matters intervening, it was not until re- 
cently that a perusal of an article by Col. 


C. Mm. Gel 


x 







Pew io MATIC NOTES 





























Ab NIT § 





A NUMIip ai 








A. de la Fuye! brought a reminder of the 
forgotten parcel from Baghdad. Now, 
Col. de la I'uye discusses twenty-seven 
pieces similar to the ones described below, 
together with twenty-three of the auto- 
nomous coins of Seleucia on the Tigris. 
The specimens in our lot, as mentioned 
above, numbered six. Five belong to one 
denomination, and the sixth was evidently 
the half of the larger pieces. Their de- 
scription is as follows : 


MITHRADATES II, 123-87 B.c. 
UNIT 

Obv. Bearded and diademed head of Mi- 
thradates II tor. 

Rev. BAZIAEQ? onr. AP2ZAKOY on 
1. Ornamented cornucopiae, filled 
with the usual fruits. Beneath, 
A?P (122-121 B.C.) 

No.1 AP to r. of cornucopiae. 





Gr. 75:21: 
No. 2 -A@?P to 1. of cornucopiae. 
GryAsoy. 
No. 3. A? to 1. F tor oi eons 


copiae. Gr. 4.52. 











NUMISMACPYCah ia 











Pe MiP 5 BF 


Od 





owen to.1.,-7P torn of cornu- 
copiae. Gr. 5.06. 
Mons Suman. Gr. 4.77. 


HALF 
Obv. Similar to the preceding. 
Rev. (BASIAEQ2) onr., APZAKOY on 
1. Bow in case, upright. 
Beneath, on 1., A?P. 
Oi: Oy (Tce, 33 


The coins are poorly struck, apparently 
from loose dies. No two of the reverse 
dies are the same. Because of the rather 
weak striking and the interfering traces 
of an earlier type it is practically impos- 
sible to establish the identity of any two 
of the obverse dies. 

With the exception of the brief descrip- 
tion and ‘mention made by Col. Allotte de 
la Fuye the coins appear not to have been 
previously known. 

Dela Fuye would assign them to Mi- 
thradates I, basing his attribution on the 
similarity which he finds between the por- 
trait on these copper coins and the head 
which appears on certain well-known tetra- 





ASD MONOGRAPHS 











A NUMISMADT EC 














drachms and drachms? of that king. But 
here a serious difficulty arises. The silver 
coins in question bear the two dates [ OP 
or AOP which can have been reckoned 
according to the Seleucid era only. These 
silver coins, then, were certainly struck in 
3abylonia by Mithradates I in 140/39 
and 139/38 B.c., the two years which in- 
tervened between his defeat of Demetrius 
II and his own death. This assignment] 
has been followed by the latest authorities 
on the subject of the Parthian coinage 
and can hardly be seriously questioned. 
Our copper coins,'on the other hand, bear 
the date A?P which, following the Seleu- 
cid system of reckoning, would be 122-1 
B.c. Col. de la Fuye refers A?P to the 
era of Alexander in Persia (330 B.c.), made 
known to us by a Chinese treatise3 on the 
life of Mohammed, itself probably a trans- 
lation of an earlier Arabic or Persian docu- 
ment. This era is further known to us 
only from Albiruni’s Athar ul bakiya. Ac- 
cording to Col. de la Fuye’s hypothesis, 
then, our copper coins must also have been 
struck in 140/39 B:C. ; 











NUMISMATIC ONG 








Peer Vier SH S T 





Such a result, however, is hardly admis- 
sible. We should have appearing in the 
same year silver coins dated according to 
the Seleucid era, and copper coins dated 
according to an obscure Alexander era, 
known to us only from later Mohammedan 
sources. To make matters worse, both 
categories of coins were certainly struck in 
the same general district, for both the sil- 
ver and the copper coins are characteris- 
tically Babylonian in fabric and style, 
and their usual find-spots would seem to 
support this assignment. Furthermore, on 
the remainder of their dated coin issues, 
the Parthians invariably employed the 
Seleucid era. And particularly in Paby- 
lonia—where the mint of our bronze coins 
must have been located —the use of the 
Seleucid era under the Parthians is attested 
by numerous clay tablets bearing dates 
according to that era.4 There is, then, 
no other admissible postulate than that 
A?P is based on the Seleucid system of 
reckoning and that it represents the date 
122-121 B.c. This date falls within the 
reign of Mithradates II who ascended 





Peeve ON OGRAPHS 


























A NUM Paya 




































the Parthian throne in 124-123 B.c. 

While admitting that the portrait on 
these bronze coins is very similar to that 
found on the Babylonian tetradrachms 
and drachms of Mithradates I, may this 
not be due to the fact that both heads 
face to the right, that their place of origin 
being the same, (Babylonia), their pro- 
ducts should also be very similar, and 
that the features of Mithradates I are, 
taken as a whole, not so very dissimilar 
[rom those of his grandson, Mithradates 
II? As the usual issues of the latter are 
of somewhat different style and fabric, it 
results that at first sight the head on our 
bronze coins seems to vary slightly from 
that usually attributed to Mithradates II. 
If, however, we should carefully compare 
it with one of the earliest and finest of the 
latter’s silver issues (Plate II, 9) it will at 
once be seen that, feature by feature, the 
two portraits are not so very dissimilar 
after all. As the date borne by the cop- 
per coins would seem to make their attri- 
bution certain, the slight variation notice- 
able in the king’s features may safely be 





















NUMISMATIC NOTES 











fecal MPSES T 





set down to the local Hellenic influence of 
the mint at which the coins were struck, 
and to the fact that they belong to the 
very first years of Mithradates II’s long 
reign. 

The reverse type of the larger denomi- 
nation (Nos. 1-5) is new for the issues of 
Mithradates II. It 1s, in fact, the earliest 
appearance of the Cornucopiae as a Parth- 
1an type. Under the later kings this par- 
ticular type was but seldom used. It oc- 
curs only once ona small bronze coin of 
Gotarzess and, in a double form, on a 
bronze coin of Phraates IV. On the 
other hand, the Bow in Case of the smaller 
denomination (No. 6) is a well known type 
of Mithradates II,7 as well as of other 
Parthian kings. The short inscription 
BASIAEQ= APZAKOY is unknown on 
the issues of Mithradates II who was 
more partial to increasingly grandiloquent 
titles, such as BASIAEQ= MELTAAOY 
AP2AKOY EITTIPANOYS; BASIAEQS 
mae Nhe IN METAAOY ~- APSAKOY 
ETTIPANOYS, or BAZIAEQ= BASI- 
AEQN APZAKOY AIKAIOY EYEPTE- 

















Pee ve.OON' OG RAP HS 


















A NUMTSMATTC 














TOY KAI @IAEAAHN. — It will thus be 
seen that to the Parthian series as a whole, 
and to the issues of Mithradates II in 
particular, the coins here published are 
both new and interesting. 

But their most remarkable feature has 
yet to be described. 

A glance at the specimens themselves 
quickly reveals the important fact that 
one and all are overstrikes on some earlier 
issue. This is also true of the similar 
coins in Col. de la Fuye’s Collection. 
Traces of this overstriking may be seen 
in each and every case, but only on one or 
two specimens does enough of the earlier 
impression remain to allow us to deter- 
mine what and whose the first issue must 
have been. On the reverses of Nos. 3 and 
5 and on the obverse of No. 2 traces of a 
beardless, diademed, male head to right 
may just be distinguished (see Plate I], 
Nos. 1, 3, and 2 respectively). As all real- 
ly individual features have been almost 
entirely obliterated by the restriking, it 
would be difficult, if not impossible, to de- 
termine without further aid whose portrait 





NUMISMATIC ON OTe 











Pate MP SES T 





the head is intended to represent. On the 
obverse of No. 5 a few traces of the old 
reverse type can still be made out (Plate 
I; 5). These traces consist of the base 
with its usual ring, part of the shaft, and 
the left-hand flange of an ancient anchor 
set upright in the Seleucid manner. To 
the left of this object are traces of four 
error f = ILA. ;.: Also on the reverse of 
No. 4 (Plate II, 4) traces of —2TTA.. can 
still be made out. 

Because of the anchor, one’s first 
thought, naturally enough, is that we 
have here to do with some earlier Seleucid 
issue. A careful search in the writer’s 
own collection, as well as through the ex- 
haustive catalogues of the Paris, London, 
Petrograd and Glasgow collections, failed 
to produce a single Seleucid coin whose 
types quite answer in their details to the 
traces at our disposal. The nearest ap- 
proach is a copper coin of Demetrius II 
(Paris Nos. 935-8, Pl. XIX,7; London No. 
25, Pl. XVIII, 7) a specimen of which 
from the writer’s collection is reproduced 
on Plate II, No. 8. However, it is at once 














AND MONOGRAPHS 














A NU Mil A 














evident that this cannot be the original 
coin on which the Parthian overstrikes 
have been placed. The flan does not pos- 
sess a bevelled edge. In its essential out- 
lines the portrait of Demetrius II is quite 
at variance with what remains of the earli- 
er head on our coins. Finally, the three 
letters which happen to be fully preserved, 
— = TT A — — — —, do not occur in 
this order on the Seleucid coin whose inscrip- 
tion reads either BAZIAEQS AHMHT— 
PIOY NIKATOPO? or BAZSIAEOS 
AHMHTPIOY OEOY #IAAAEAGOY 
NIKATOPOS. Apparently then, we 
must look elsewhere than in the Seleucid 
series. 

Turning now to the smallest of our 
coins, No. 6, while the actual reverse de- 
sign of the original piece has been effect- 
ually obliterated, it is a most fortunate 
chance that still preserves for us some six 
letters of the inscription. With the hint 
furnished us by Nos. 4 and 5, the letters 
Y 21T AO &- - -can now readily be made 
out. In other words, the coins re-used as 
blanks by the Parthian mint-master turn 





NUMISMATIC NOTES. 











feels MEPS EST 






































out to be specimens of some unknown 
bronze issue of the first king of Characene, 
Hyspaosines son of Sagdodonakos. 

The coinages of the kings of Characene, 
an important district comprising the delta 
of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, have 
been exhaustively studied by Wadding- 
tom) babelon’?, and Mr.. Hill. These 
writers have shown that the issues com- 
menced with Hyspaosines, known to have 
founded the chief city, Xapa& “Torraoat- 
vov (Spasinou Charax). His period has 
been established by his known coins which 
bear the date HITP. This would represent 
125-4 B.c. if, as has been assumed, the 
Seleucid era was the one used. Mr. Hill? 
says that while “‘there is no absolutely 
certain evidence that the Seleucid era is 
that which is employed on the Characen- 
ian coins”’ this is nevertheless extremely 
probable. Of this our coins now furnish 
us with the necessary confirmation. Hy- 
spaosines’ copper coins must have been 
issued previous to 122-1 B.c., for the 
Parthian type superimposed upon them 
is dated A?P, and we know that the 





PevoweeNlLONO GRAPHS 











A NUMTPSaty ee 

















Parthians reckoned their dates according 
to the Seleucid era. Judging by the traces 
(in themselves sharp enough) of the old 
types, still to be seen on our coins, these 
could not have been in circulation so very 
long before they were put to use as blanks 
in the Parthian mint. The only date so 
far found on Hyspaosines’ coins (his two 
tetradrachms) is HTTP which, if we reckon 
according to the Seleucid era, would be 
125-124 B.C., or just three years previous 
to the date borne by our Parthian over- 
strike. Everything points, therefore, to 
the correctness of the belief that the 
Seleucid era was used for dating the 
Characenian coinage. 

What the particular occasion could have 
been which caused types of Mithradates 
II of Parthia to be struck upon those of 
Hyspaosines of Charax, we do not know. 
It may merely be that such Characenian 
coins as chanced to come by trade the 
short distance upstream to the great city 
of Seleucia on the Tigris, were employed 
as coin blanks by the Parthian mint loca- 
ted in that city. However, as yet we 





NUMISMATIC NO Pass 















Poet MOP SE o:T 





have no means of being certain that these 
coins were really re-coined in Seleucia. It 
should be noticed that every one of the 
specimens at our disposal is thus over- 
struck,'3 and itis hardly probable that 
such an important mint should have been 
forced to depend for its coin blanks solely 
upon such Characenian coins as happened 
to reach it. 

Analogy with later Parthian overstrikes™ 
—almost invariably the result of some 
military success — would seem to suggest 
that in the present instance, too, the over- 
striking might have been the direct conse- 
quence of a victory gained by Mithradates 
over the king of Characene, whereby a 
large number of the latter’s coins fell into 
his hands. But our lamentably fragment- 
ary history is entirely silent with regard 
to any campaign conducted by Mithradates 
against Hyspaosines. We only know that 
at the time of his accession, Mithradates, 
by his great ability, saved the Parthian 
kingdom from disintegration. He checked 
the advance of the Scythians, and modern 
historians have surmised that at this time 


































Paes weNOGRAPHS 











A NUM Sata 


he also, put down an attempt made by 
Himerus,viceroy's of Babylon, tomake him- 
selfking. Thelatter’s onlyknown dated coin 
was struck in OTTP (124-123 B.c.)'© and 
gives to Himerus the title of Nuandopos. 
As one of our few historical notices of 
this shadowy ruler actually states that he 
made war upon Messene (a province of 
Characene and often synonymous for it) 
perhaps the title has a direct reference to 
the outcome of that campaign. Possibly 
Justin’s general statement (xlii. 2): ‘He 
(Mithradates) carried on many wars, with 
great bravery, against his neighbors, and 
added many provinces to the Parthian 
kingdom,’’ may be regarded as implying a 
campaign against Characene. If so, how- 
ever, the suggestion must not be taken 
too literally, at least as far as regards 
Characene. That province actually re- 
mained more or less independent of Par- 
thian rule throughout the reign of Mith- 
radates II, as the extant coins of its kings 
sufficiently prove. Nothing would hinder 
us however from supposing that Mithra- 
dates might have been victorious, and 








NUMISMATIGON Gia 








Pavia PoE S T 








might even have added a portion of the 
Characenian territory (possibly Messene) 
to his kingdom. 

From the foregoing it may be surmised, 
either that Mithradates, after suppressing 
Himerus, successfully carried on the oper- 
ations commenced by the latter against 
Characene, or that in Himerus’ treasury 
was found a lot of Characenian money 
captured from Hyspaosines but which had 
not yet been re-minted by Himerus.!7 
These coins, if our conjecture —and it is 
merely a conjecture —be correct, Mith- 
radates, in the year 122-121 B.C., put to 
his own use by overstriking with his types. 

The only coins of Hyspaosines hitherto 
known are two silver tetradrachms, the 
one in the Berlin collection, the other in 
Paris. That Hyspaosines should also 
have struck a series of copper coins might 
have been surmised, and for this suppo- 
sition we now have evidence. The types of 
the larger of the two denominations.are, 
obverse : diademed, beardless head of 
Hyspaosines to r., exactly as on his silver 
coins; reverse: Seleucid anchor upright 





wae orev ON OGRA PHS 












A NUM DSS fue 









between BASIAEQS (probably) and 
YSTTAOSINOY. A proposed restoration 
of this piece is given, Plate II, no. 7. Of 
the smaller denomination the obverse type 
only is preserved. It consists of a similar 
portrait of Hyspaosines tor. The reverse 
type, with the exception of the king’s 
name, has been completely obliterated by 
the Parthian overstrike. It is to be hoped 
that some future find will give us both 
coins with types intact. In the mean- 
while we must needs remain content with 
what the vicissitudes of time, the expedi- 
ent found necessary by the Parthian mint 
master, and the hasty or careless procedure 
of his workmen have preserved for us. 

























Hyspaosines Tetr. (Berlin). 





NUMISMATIC ONO 


































Pane PS EST 


NOTES 


1 Les Monnaies de l’Elymaide, Rev. Num., 1919, 
PD. 74-5. 

2 Brit. Mus. Cat. Parthia, pp. 14-15, Nos. 55- 
or, PI. Ill, Nos. 10-43. 

8 Terrien de La Couperie, Sur deux éres incon- 
nues de l’Asie anterieure, d’aprés un document 
Chinois, 1891. 

4 A. T. Clay, Babylonian Records in the Li- 

brary of J. Pierpont Morgan, Part II, p. r2ff. 

B. M. Cat. Parthia, Pl. xxviii, 8. 
Ipc ll xxi, 23; 
Per ity AL Ss 13: 
De la Fuye also thought only of earlier Se- 
leucid issues, 1. c. p. 75. 
Rev. Num., 1866 = Mélanges de Numism.., ii, 
Pp. 77-107. 
10 Jour. Int. d’Arch. num. I (1898), pp. 381-404 
= Mélanges numism., ili, pp. 221-250. 

11 Brit. Mus. Cat. Arabia, Mesopotamia, Persia, 
Introd. pp. cxciv—ccx. 

12 1, c. p. cxcvi, note 3. 

18 During a recent visit to Paris, the writer was 





oO st ox Oo 


Ve} 





able to inspect these coins in Col. de la Fuye’s 
collection. All show signs of overstriking — 
though unfortunately none show sufficient 


MND MONOGRAPHS 














18 


A NU MTPSata tT re 








14 


15 


16 





traces of the earlier coin to prove that they 
were all of Hyspaosines. 

Col. Allotte dela Fuye, Monnaies arsacides sur- 
frappées. Rev. Num.1904, p.174ff. Dressel, 
Z.f.N., 1922, pp. 156-177. 

Diodorus, xxxiv, 21, actually calls him ‘‘king’’, 
6 Tov IIdpOwy Baoire’s. The coins would 
seem to bear him out in this (B. MM; Car 
Parthia, p. 23, Nos. 1, 2, and note 2). See 
also the writer’s ‘‘A Parthian MHoard,’’ in 
Num. Chron., 1924. 

B. M. Cat. Parthia. Introduction, Dp aaa 


17 While at least seven specimens of Himerus’ 


silver money are known, as yet not a single 
bronze coin of his has come to light. The 
copper specimen published by Petrowicz, 
Plate xxv, 4, is more likely to be a coin of 
Phraates II (= B. M, Gat. Parthia) Pieineo)} 





NUMISMATTC ND 














PLATE I 


NUMISMATIC PALIMPSEST 








PLATE II 


NUMISMATIC PALIMPSEST 








a SO eee ee ee 


ae: ae ee ee 





NUMISMATIC NOTES AND MONOGRAPHS 





1 Sydney P. Noe. Coin Hoards. 1921. 47 
pages. 6plates. 5oc. 

4 Howland Wood. The Mexican Revolu- 
tionary Coinage, 1913-1916. 1921. 44 
pages. 26 plates. $2.00. 

6 Agnes Baldwin. Five Roman Gold Me- 
dallions. 1921. 103 pages. 8 plates. 
$1.50. 

7 Sydney P. Noe. Medallic Work of A. A. 
Weinman, 1921. 31 pages. 17 plates. 
$1.00. 

8 Gilbert S. Perez. The Mint of the Philip- 
pine Islands. 1921. 8 pages. 4 plates. 
50c. 

9 David Eugene Smith, LL.D. Computing 
pages. 25 plates. 






The First Seleucid 
1921. 40 pages. 8 


1, French Orders and 
Ilopages. 35 plates. 


old Dollars of 1858. 
lates. 50¢. 





NuMISMATIC NOTES AND MONOGRAPHS 
(Continued) 


18 R. B. Whitehead. Pre-Mohammedan Coin- 
age of Northwestern India. 1922. 56 
pages. 15 plates. $2.00. 

14 George F. Hill. Attambelos I of Characene. 
1922. 12 pages. 3 plates. $1.00. 

15 M. P. Vlasto. Taras Oikistes (A Contri- 
bution to Tarentine Numismatics). 1922. 
234 pages. 13 plates. $3.50. 

16 Howland Wood. Commemorative Coin- 
age of United States. 1922. 63 pages. 
7 plates. . $1.50. 

17 Agnes Baldwin. Six Roman Bronze Me- 
dallions. 1923. 39pages. 6 plates. $1.50. © 

18 Howland Wood. Tegucigalpa Coinage of 
1823. 1923. 16pages. 2 plates. 5o0c. 

19 Edward T. Newell. Alexander Hoards— 
II. Demanhur Hoard. 1923. 162 
pages. 8 plates. $2.50. 

20 Harrold E. Gillingham. Italian Orders of 
Chivalry and Medals of Honour. 1923. 
146 pages. 34 plates. $2.00. 

21 Edward T. Newell. Alexander Hoards— 
III. Andritsaena. 1924. 39 pages. 6 
plates. $1.00. 

22 C. T. Seltman. A Hoard from Side. 1924. 
20 pages. 3 plates. $1.00. 

23 R. B. Seager. A Cretan Coin Hoard, 1924. 
55 pages. 12 plates. $2.00, 


24 S, R. Milbank. The Coinage of Aegina. 
66 pages. 5 plates, $2.00. 


